I promise
by Deidara97
Summary: Amon struggles to understand the eyepatched anomaly that has been injured and has ended up sleeping in his apartment. Brief friendship oneshot. Mild language.


**_AN This is written from the perspective of the anime, so apologies if it isn't congruent with the manga in any way. It's on my reading list. Comments are appreciated. Please enjoy._**

 ** _..._**

 _He looks so peaceful…_ The senior investigator thought as his eyes rested upon the sleeping boy. _If only things could stay like this forever._ He gently shut the door behind him as he left and tip-toed down the hall. It would be another three hours before the boy woke up. Three hours before the peace was broken.

Amon paced as effectively and silently as he could in his cramped apartment. He had no idea how his guest would react to the situation upon waking, but that couldn't be helped now... Or could it? His gaze kept returning to the closed bedroom door. He could do nothing but sigh in anguish as the caller ID on his phone showed three missed calls from Akira. He had dug himself pretty deep.

He decided to get out and try to clear his head. The last of the leaves scampered beneath his frantic steps. The area was receiving its first cold snap of the season, and it wasn't until Amon had walked over a mile away that he wished he had brought a jacket.

 _It's not like he'll be angry with me for saving his life… Although, he was pretty clear that's not what he wanted… Damn eyepatch…_ He furrowed his brow and clenched his teeth at the memory of their battle the previous evening.

As he realized he was getting ahead of himself with his thought process, he shook his head in a fit of disbelief. _Why did I even save him? He's just a ghoul…_ His footsteps had slowed to a stop and the bustling city continued as a blur around him. The magnitude of his decision had finally dawned on him.

 _The next person he kills…Their death will be my fault... I killed them._ The image of a crying girl whose mother had been eaten by a ghoul flooded his mind. His eyes widened and his breathing grew rapid in panic. _What the hell have I done?_ Within an instant, Amon had turned around and was racing to right his wrong. He had to return to his apartment before Kaneki woke up. He had to end this.

He didn't understand what his fascination with the eyepatched ghoul was, but it wasn't worth any of this. No one should have to die because of it. Even with his resolve, the journey home seemed to last much longer than any other day's commute.

Meanwhile, back at the apartment, the boy had finally begun to stir. He gave up on assessing his surroundings as he was arrested by piercing abdominal pain and a blinding headache. As his eyes eased open from their clenched state, he noticed the unfamiliar room spinning around him. _Alive?_ He managed to turn his head slightly to the right and see the dusk skyline staring back at him through the high-rise window. _Alive._ His gaze rested there, blank and uninterrupted, for almost an hour.

His cold eyes finally shifted as he heard the bedroom door handle turn confidently. Amon entered, wind battered and firmly grasping his cherished quinque. He was ready for this. There was nothing else on his mind. It was imperative that he end the life of this ghoul. _So why? Why won't my feet move?_ His lips had parted and he tried to conceal a slight tremble. The boy's pale eyes had pierced somewhere deep in the investigator's thoughts. Kaneki was sitting upright with his hands resting on his legs. His emotionless complexion was fixed on the dilated pupils of his company. He chose to break the painfully long silence.

"…Did you not hear me?" His voice was raspy and would have sounded weak to anyone other than Amon, who knew exactly what the boy meant. "I told you to hurry up and kill me." His voice never faltered and his eyes never shifted.

Amon's lips moved as if he was trying to form words, but any sound was lost to a roaring sea of doubt.

"That's okay. I am willing to give you another chance." His voice genuinely sounded forgiving, even pleasant. A small smile forced its way to his face as he gingerly moved his legs over the edge of the bed. He winced in pain from his injuries and tried to gather his strength to stand.

By this time, Amon had clenched his teeth in disappointment at his failed resolve. His raven locks concealed his features as his head hung with rage.

"Why…" His fist was clenched at his side. "Why don't you fight?" _Why do you have to make my job so damn difficult?_ The boy's eyes fell in contemplation.

"Would you be comfortable fighting for your life if it was attained at the expense of others' lives?" The boy couldn't recover from his injuries without sustenance. He was in crippling pain and his vision was blurred. The room was still spinning and it took everything he had just to maintain consciousness. _Please… Hurry._

"…You're not like the others…" Tears had stained the man's face as he tried to understand why he couldn't kill this ghoul. "They don't feel remorse…"

"You're wrong!" As soon as he lashed out, Kaneki regretted it. He fell forward off the bed and landed on his knees. He doubled over in pain with his right arm clutching his injured torso. "You're wrong…" This time the words were much weaker. "I'm not that different… The others are hurting and suffering from the violence just like you… Just like you, they've lost the ones they love. Just like you they want revenge. They're not proud of what they are, but they can't change that…" His words were occasionally interrupted by muffled hiccups.

Amon's heart sank as the boy's tears hit the floor. _So that's it?_ After sheathing his quinque, his feet moved instinctively towards the pathetic child. He knelt down slowly beside him and placed an arm behind his back. The boy's weight shifted into his arms and the mess of colorless hair fell abruptly on his chest.

"It hurts." His words were muffled between sobs. "Please."

He closed his eyes firmly and clutched the boy to his chest. _Why is this world so cruel?_

"Amon-san… Could you promise me something?" The white locks shifted as he spoke. "Please… Don't hurt my friends…" A bitter smile grew on the senior investigator's face.

"I promise."


End file.
